Can't Help Falling For You
by digiblue00
Summary: Soujirou's determined not to fall for anyone, especially for a certain ninja girl. But can he do it? Join Soujirou in this oneshot to see how he fares...


**(A/N: Hey peeps! I'm back and yes I know I have a REEAALLLY LOOOONG lists of fanfics to complete, but this year is my GCSEs so I have to cram and slog the whole year long. Though as you can see I'm not… :P Anyways, today's my birthday! So I'll just like to wish all those 3rd July babies out there a happy birthday too! So in order to get the writing bug out of my system so I can concentrate again, here's a ONESHOT songfic on Misao and Soujirou!)**

It had been a long time since he had been on the road and though he didn't want to admit it, Soujirou was actually glad that he wasn't out there aimlessly searching for his answers.

His arms were elbow length into the big tub of warm soapy dish water as he gently scrubbed the cutleries clean. At that moment, before he had any chance to reminisce about his past, he heard the familiar thumping of abnormally loud footsteps thundering down the staircase.

'It's a wonder that that old flight of staircase has managed to survive for so long…' Soujirou mused. Soujirou gave a small sigh and went back to his washing when he felt someone drape a pair of hands over his eyes.

"Guess who?" the speaker asked cheerfully.

"Misao-san, kindly remove your hands so that I may return to the task at hand." Soujirou chuckled when he saw that the girl had not only obediently done so but had pouted.

"Mou! Sou-chan no baka! It's only a game! You don't have to be so serious you know!" The raven-haired girl retorted, angry that she had no managed to scare him yet again.

Soujirou smiled to himself as he turned to look at the girl staring angrily at him. Looking into her beautiful eyes of emerald, he felt himself almost seeming to drown in them and his heartbeat thumping in his chest at the speed of a thousand horses…

**_It's hard to forget the first time I met you  
Those mesmerizing pair of eyes in my mind. _**

_**The thoughts of you  
Cannot be erased**_

_Soujirou walked the bustling streets of Kyoto, marveling at the sight before him. He had been traveling for almost a year and he had miraculously landed back at the very same place he had started out from. _

'_Japan can't be that small… Can it?' Soujirou thought to himself. Just as he was about to ponder deeper about the land area of Japan, he felt his stomach rumble and he felt the familiar pangs of hunger gnawing at his sides again. _

_Like a man possessed, the former Tenken headed for the nearest rest house he could find. He quickly ordered a bowl of ramen from the waitress nearest to the table he could find. _

_When the bowl arrived, Soujirou could feel his eyes bulging from his sockets as he inhaled the delicious aroma of the food that laid in front of him. Without hesitation, he shoved the food into his mouth, not caring how people were looking at him. Had Yumi-san been watching she would have complained of the times she had wasted teaching him proper table etiquette._

_Soujirou stood up, ready to pay for his meal. It was then that a raven-haired girl had literally 'bounced' up to his table holding up his bill. Soujirou placed his hand into his left-hand pocket only to find… a hole… Soujirou looked embarrassedly at the girl in front of him hoping that she would get the message, however the girl just stood there smiling at him…_

_**Five minutes later…**_

_Soujirou looked at the girl in front of him still smiling with the bill in hand. Just as Soujirou could open his mouth to tell the girl he had no money, the girl pointed an accusing finger at him_

"_I know who you are! Tenken no Soujirou!"_

_Soujirou inwardly winced at the mention of his former name but replied, "Yes, I am, but I no longer go by that name anymore. I am nothing more than a rurouni anymore." _

"_Don't lie to me! I can tell from that insane smile of yours that you are waiting for the opportunity to strike! However, you will not be so lucky this time for I, Makimachi Misao will stop you and end your reign of terror!" Misao growled, whipping out her deadly kunais, aiming them at Soujirou's head._

"_Misao… Makimachi… … Oh! You are Himura-san's friend right?" Soujirou said, smiling as usual. _

"_Don't play tricks with me! I will not be deceived by you!" Misao replied, discarding the bill to a surprised onlooker and back flipping a step back._

"_Makimachi-san, honto ni gomenasai! But I lost all my money and I'm willing to make it up by washing the dishes!" Soujirou said, kneeling apologetically._

"_Huh?"_

_Misao gaped at the kneeling rurouni in front of her, her mind still reeling from the Tenken's confession. _

'_He's not here to destroy us… then why is he kneeli…'_

_Misao stopped mid-thought, a vein popping out of her head when she suddenly realized what the Tenken meant. Soujirou watched in fear when he saw her face turn from one of extreme anger and irritation to be replaced by a sweet, saccharine smile._

"_Sou-chan!" Misao barked._

"_Sou-chan?" Soujirou asked, eyes wide._

"_Hai. Sou-chan, since you claim to be a rurouni now, I shall call you Sou-chan. As for your bill, you can start by reporting to the kitchen now." _

_Soujirou murmured a gratitude of thanks as he dashed into the kitchen. Little did he know the horror in store for him…_

Soujirou blinked back to reality when he felt something flashing in front of his eyes. He looked closer and upon inspection realized that it was Misao who had been waving her hand in front of him.

"Sou-chan? Daijobu desu ka?" Misao asked concerned. Her friend had been zoning out for nearly five minutes!

"Oh, daijobu! I'm fine! Thanks for asking." Soujirou gave a polite smile and returned to his duty, only to find Misao tugging his right sleeve.

"Ne, Sou-chan… I have something to show you…" Came the surprisingly shy voice of Misao from behind him. 'Since when has Misao been shy?'

Sighing, Soujirou dried his hands and closed his eyes, mentally preparing for the worse. "Ok, let's go."

"Yay! You're the best!" Giving him a big hug, the ninja girl grabbed his hand and merrily zoomed out the restaurant.

_**When I hold your hand and feel your warmth  
It's really too much for me to handle  
**_

Soujirou just let himself be dragged along by the happy girl, secretly enjoying the warmth of her hand on his. He was happy that she was feeling better. She had been crying her eyes out for the past four days after Aoshi's rejection.

'As long as she's happy, I'm happy,' Soujirou thought.

_**Your innocence I would like to treasure  
When I see you suffering I will feel sad  
**_

Just before their destination, Soujirou felt Misao noticeably slow down and then without warning, she stepped behind him and gently covered her hands around his eyes just like she had done earlier.

"Misao-san, this is not a time for you to be playing games." Soujirou gently chided as he waited for her to remove her hands like she always did.

He was surprised when she didn't remove them but had whispered into his ear something along the lines of a surprise. Of course he couldn't admit to himself the rush of blood to his cheeks was caused by her intimate gesture.

Nodding mutely, he relaxed and allowed her to guide him. He could tell just to keep his eyes covered, she had to stay on tiptoes seeing as he was one head taller than her. But he knew that if he pointed that out, he would get no closer to his surprise than Himura-san was to proposing to Kaoru-san.

**_Just afraid I will fall in love with you  
Dare not let myself be too close to you  
Afraid I've got nothing to offer you  
To love you may require a lot of courage too  
_**

_**Just afraid I will fall in love with you  
Maybe one day I wouldn't be able to control myself  
From falling in love with you  
Thinking of you only hurts myself **_

**I just can't help falling in love with you **

**_  
What's the reason that's holding me back?  
I really really don't wish to  
Fall into a love trap like this _**

_**Just afraid I will fall in love with you  
Dare not let myself be too close to you  
Afraid I've got nothing to offer you  
To love you may require a lot of courage too**_

_**Just afraid I will fall in love with you  
Maybe one day I wouldn't be able to control myself  
From falling in love with you  
Thinking of you only hurts myself **_

**I just can't help falling in love with you **

Soujirou blinked as he felt that suddenly unfamiliar glare of sunlight on his eyes. Shielding his eyes from the light, he waited until his eyes had adjusted to the intensity of the light outside before he noticed his surroundings. He looked around…

'Where's Misao?'

Soujirou panicked. He knew she playful, but today something was different about her and though he had wanted to ask her about it, he found that he was unable to form the words.

"Ahem…" Came a tiny voice from his side, so small that had he not been a hitokiri last time, he would never be able to hear her.

Turning around, he felt his breath hitch and he felt his heart pounding furiously and ceasing to beat all at the same time.

Before his eyes, stood Misao. But something about her was different, she had let down her hair. Her hair which had always been kept in a braid now cascaded down her slim shoulders like a waterfall of black ink that ended on her waist. It was taking all of Soujirou's will and threats from Misao to resist the urge to run his fingers through her ebony wealth.

Soujirou visibly gulped when Misao took one step towards him. Her porcelain face now inches in front of his.

"Sou-chan… I… I… I just wanted to say… that… erm… I… that is, I…" Misao winced at her own stuttering and clearing her throat she managed to say, "Thankyouforalwaysbeingthereformenomatterwhat"

Soujirou blinked in shock. "Excuse me?"

"Erm, what I meant to say is thank you for always being there for me no matter what and… and… and…"

Soujirou looked at the ninja in amusement. Makimachi Misao was never a gifted orator, but seeing her suddenly at a loss for words… Soujirou smiled, somehow glad that he was causing her such distress.

Then almost like it had never happen, Soujirou felt something warm brush against his lips.

Misao's cheeks flamed when she saw that Soujirou had no response to her whatsoever. She had only realized that she had fallen in love with her best friend almost after Aoshi had rejected her. She had spent the next three days distressing and denying the facts that had been staring at her in the face for so long. It was a wonder why they had not kicked her in the face after seeing she took so long to realize that she had fallen hard for her friend.

She looked up worriedly at Soujirou from under her long bangs, hoping they would hide her embarrassment. For once in her life, she really understood the meaning of 'shy'. She turned to walk away when she felt a small pressure on both her shoulders. This seemingly small gesture sent currents and currents of electricity thorugh her entire body and she felt herself trip over her own two feet.

Misao closed her eyes, readying herself for the impact when she felt something gently brushed over her forehead. Opening her eyes, she felt herself staring into the brilliant sapphire eyes of Soujirou and felt her cheeks flaming even hotter than the sun as she heard him say

"Oh my Misao, what am I ever going to do with you?" Soujirou murmured, fondly stroking her left cheek.

Gently pulling her back to a standing position, he held her close, feeling her tense up almost immediately.

"Misao, did you know how hard I had to fight myself from growing close to you? Do you know the pains I go through to stop myself from falling for you?" Soujirou chuckled to himself, recollecting the memories of forcing himself to wash one thousand dishes non-stop after his "pure" thoughts about a certain raven-haired ninja beauty.

Misao felt herself blush even harder. By now she felt her cheeks were so hot that it would be soon before she died of a heat stroke. Soujirou felt her discomfort but was impelled to continue.

"My dear Misao, do you know what things you have put me through? What lengths I would go through just for this day, which I have dreamed of for so many nights to come?" Soujirou said, his finger now tilting Misao's face upwards as he looked into her eyes.

Misao felt her heart pound with the intensity of lave flowing from Vesuvius as she felt Soujirou's lips on her own and his tongue gently probing her lips coaxing them to open which she shyly obeyed.

The kiss finally ended when the two came up for air.

"Sou-chan, I… love you" Misao said smiling at Soujirou as she rested her cheek against his chest.

"And I you, my Misao. Always and forever." Soujirou promised as the two sealed their love with a kiss full of hope and promise for their future together.

**(A/N: I love Soujirou and Misao! This one-shot songfic turned out longer and different from what I had expected and my initial plan to end the story by mid-night failed. But hope you guys liked it as much as I enjoyed writing this! So review and make me happy! And once again happy birthday to all 3rd July babies out there, even though it's past that day already cos we are all one year older! sings "All Grown Up" theme song 16!) **


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